By the evening of the third day, Xinhai had finished the last set of training. He recalled his partners one by one into their Poké Balls, then stood in the middle of the training room, his gaze sweeping over the space where he had spent the past half month.
The gray stone floor still bore traces of his partners' training—shallow claw marks, scorch marks left by energy collisions, and dried streaks where water had once washed over the ground...
Every training session and every drop of sweat from the past half month had become part of this place.
"Time to go," he murmured. Then he switched off the lights, pushed open the door, and headed down the corridor toward the Gym's main entrance.
Early the next morning, Xinhai got up and tidied his room, packing all his luggage into the Spatial Backpack.
His partners had already put away their own things as well. After checking once more to make sure nothing had been left behind, he opened the door and walked toward the elevator.
As he checked out, Joy Ya looked at the room card he handed back, a gentle smile in her eyes. "Xinhai, get some good rest when you go back and have a wonderful New Year."
"Mm, thank you, Aunt Ya. And thank you for taking care of me during this time." Xinhai accepted his Pokédex and gave her a slight bow before turning and leaving the Pokémon Center.
The morning air in Rustboro City was crisper than usual. The streets were already filled with holiday cheer, red lanterns swaying softly in the breeze while festive red paper cuttings adorned the storefronts.
"Eevee." Eevee sat on Xinhai's shoulder, its large brown eyes taking in the lively street scene. Its fluffy tail curled lightly around the back of